


Bright Green Eyes

by planet_plantagenet



Category: The Tempest - Shakespeare
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, First Meetings, M/M, Pining, Prequel, Unrequited Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-05
Updated: 2016-07-05
Packaged: 2018-07-21 19:56:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7401730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/planet_plantagenet/pseuds/planet_plantagenet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How Sebastian met Antonio.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bright Green Eyes

The party was held on a winter night on Polaris, when the sky was a clear, dark indigo and the planet’s twin moons shone bright silver. The newly appointed Duke of Polaris, a man named Prospero, was eagerly chatting with King Alonso.

“My wife and I are planning on having a child,” I heard Prospero explain as I walked among the tables. Alonso chuckled.

“Ah, yes. I have two. They can be a real pain in the neck when they’re younger, but you love them all the same. I can’t imagine a time without my Ferdinand or Claribel.”

Children were not my area of interest, so I changed directions, looking for someone else’s conversation to listen in on. Unfortunately, Alonso spotted me and let out a shout.

“Sebastian! Have you met Prospero yet? He’s a charming fellow.”

I sighed, and turned to see Prospero beaming at me.

“So you’re the king’s brother?” he asked cheerfully.

“Yeah,” I replied. “My name’s S-sebastian.” Small talk was never an area of interest or expertise, either—especially given my slight stutter. Alonso seemed to sense my apprehension, and he turned back to Prospero.

Unsure of what to do next, I wandered over to the door that lead to the porch. Outside, the temperature was colder than I was used to on Merak. I drew my cloak around me, gazing down at the valley which Prospero’s mansion overlooked. Even at night, it was beautiful.

“Enjoying the view?” The voice was smooth, quiet, and yet it somehow blocked out all other sounds. I froze, then slowly turned.

A tall man stood leaning against the doorframe, half-smiling at me. He had silky black hair that almost fell over his piercingly green eyes. His eyebrows were raised in a way that could be seen as slightly cocky or inquisitive. I felt my cheeks get warm.

“Y-yeah.” Damn stutter. Well, there went my chance to make a good first impression.

“Alonso’s brother, right?” asked the man.

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.

“I’m Antonio,” he told me. “You?”

“Sebastian.”

“Ah. Yes, Prospero mentioned you when telling me about the Merak royal family.”

“You know Prospero?” I asked, my attempt at making small talk. For some reason this amused Antonio, and he let out a sharp laugh.

“Of course. He’s my brother. Always difficult to have a brother in power, isn’t it?” His bright green eyes bore into me, and I could feel my face redden even more. Hopefully Antonio wouldn’t notice. He already had the air of a person who is always judging you.

I suddenly realized that Antonio had asked me a question, and he was expecting an answer. I tripped over my words as I replied. “Uh. Yeah, k-kinda, I guess s-so.”

Antonio raised an eyebrow. I hoped it wasn’t in response to my now-very-obvious stammer. Then he finally smiled and said, “Well, I guess we have something in common, then.”

I nodded again, maybe a little too vigorously than I should have. I must’ve been grinning like an idiot.

We’d come to a halt in the conversation. I absent-mindedly fingered the hem of my cloak. Antonio turned to walk back into the building, but I jumped forward. He paused, expectant.

“I, er, won’t you s-stay awhile?” I blurted. It sounded so incredibly awkward. I laughed sheepishly, taking a small step back. To my surprise, Antonio turned to me, and grinned.

“Of course.” The gesture sent a rush of adrenaline through me, and I smiled back.

-

I don’t know how long we talked for. Hours, that I’m sure of. Time seemed to pass much too quickly, and I couldn’t seem to take my eyes off Antonio. It was terrifying, and amazing.

At first we attempted small talk. The planet. The party. But then Antonio began to tell me about himself, and about Prospero, and my stutter seemed to drop away as I talked too.

It was wonderful.

“Sebastian,” Antonio said thoughtfully after a pause in the conversation, “do you think that Prospero will make a good duke?”

“From what you’ve told me, I think so,” I replied.

“Yeah….” He mused for a second, lost in his own thoughts. “Although… in my experience, Prospero’s never been one for leadership. Always so introverted. Used to spend his time reading books about science rather than doing his homework. I mean, he’s a great guy, but I don’t feel like he’s cut out to be a leader.”

Why was Antonio telling me this? Because I, too, had a brother in a ruling position? But Alonso was a firm and just leader, and I had only slight annoyance that he’d gotten the throne instead of me.

But it didn’t matter. All I could focus on was the fact that Antonio was actually talking to me, and taking me seriously. No one had ever asked me to comment on such an important political topic in just a regular conversation.

“Whatever the case,” Antonio continued, “I guess I’ll just have to wait and see, huh?”

“Yeah, I think that’s a good idea.”

The clock chimed. Eleven o’clock. “I should probably go,” Antonio said quickly.

I nodded. “Yeah, uh, me too.”

“Well, this was fun.” Antonio grinned. “Always nice to meet someone as interesting as you, Sebastian.”

He flashed me a quick, slightly flirtatious smile, and I felt myself blush again. Then he was gone, skipping down the stairs to the front door.

I stayed still, standing on the patio, watching Antonio’s cape billow out behind him as he walked. A chilly wind blew across the valley. I could see my breath before me. I sighed, and slowly went back inside.

I couldn’t sleep that night. My mind kept replaying the conversation with Antonio again, and again, and again.

-

Fortunately, as the king’s brother, I had many reasons to come back to Polaris. I began to get excited for business trips that would otherwise seem extremely boring. Every time, I would look for Antonio, and every time, I would feel a rush of adrenaline when his bright green eyes first made contact with mine. Every time, we would talk and laugh and have so much more fun than I usually had on my own. Every time, when I went back to Merak, I would think about Antonio for hours on end and wish he could come back with me.

Every time I went to see Antonio, I would fall more deeply in love with him.

It was crazy. Absolutely nuts. I didn’t dare tell anyone, least of all Antonio himself. Maybe he’d just laugh. Maybe he’d tell more people, and they’d make fun of me, how I’d fallen for a boy.

But the biggest question of all was that of Antonio’s feelings. He’d never mentioned any sort of partner, girlfriend, boyfriend. We didn’t talk about romance—mostly about politics. Sometimes he would grin at me, or say something flirty, and my heart would skip a beat. But his true feelings were painfully ambiguous.

I’d get anxious around him. My stutter would come back; butterflies would multiply in my stomach. His smooth, quiet voice would send shivers down my spine, and I’d get a rush every time his skin brushed against mine.

How could something so wonderful be so agonizing??

One day, the two of us were talking in the courtyard in the middle of Prospero’s castle. There was a large fountain in the middle, and we were sitting on a bench in the garden looking over it. No one else was there; the courtyard was blissfully silent. Antonio had described the current problems with Prospero’s reign—apparently Prospero was spending too much time on reading and not taking enough responsibility.

There was something different in the way Antonio talked today. His speech was more clipped; he’d stare off into the distance as if thinking up some sort of elaborate plan. He wasn’t as open as he’d been in weeks and months before. And that worried me.

“Are y-you okay?” I asked him after a particularly long pause.

“Of course,” he responded. “I’m just thinking. There’s a lot to do these days, you know. Prospero. Stuff.”

I didn’t know. I lived on Merak, not Polaris. And Alonso never told me anything.

“Yeah,” I finally said, with a forced smile.

Antonio stood up abruptly. “I should go. Work to do, you know.” He began to walk away. I jumped up, suddenly very sweaty.

“I… can’t… can’t you s-stay a little?”

He turned slightly, still walking. “No. I’m sorry, but I can’t.”

“Wait!!”

Antonio stopped, turned. My heart pounded in my chest as I ran towards him. I halted inches away from his face.

“Yes?” he breathed.

Then, in a sudden burst of irrationality, I pulled Antonio towards me and kissed him.

Neither of us spoke for a couple seconds. Adrenaline still coursed through my body. What had I just done??

Then Antonio smiled. I couldn’t tell the emotion, but there was some sadness mixed in there. He cupped my face in his hand, my cheek tingling where his fingers made contact.

“Oh, Sebastian,” he whispered.

Then he was turning, walking away, his cloak billowing like it had on the night we met. I stood, shaking, the feeling of the kiss still burning on my lips.


End file.
